Across The Table
by SharpeBB
Summary: A simple prompt in a class exercise has TK stumped, and promises to change the nature of his relationship with Kari.
**An idea I've had for a while based of the cover image, but I tweaked it a bit, as I wanted to try something different. Let me know what you think!**

 **And as always, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

TK's eyes watered and his vision began to blur as he continued to stare at the blank piece of paper sitting on his desk. The room filled with the noise of numerous scratching pencils but nothing else. Everyone was focused on finishing what they could in the short time that had been allotted. However, TK was completely stumped.

"You have ten minutes to write about the person sitting across from you. It can be as short or as long as you want, but it has to be honest. Honesty is important in writing, and doing regular exercises to practise your honesty will help you later on. When you're done, flip your paper over and I will collect them. Now please begin."

Those were the instructions the teacher had given the class a few minutes ago. And since then, TK had stared blankly at his paper, unable to think of what to write. It was an anomaly for TK to not be writing vigorously in his Creative Writing class. This time though, he was completely unsure of what to put on the paper.

It wasn't as though he couldn't think of anything. On the contrary, there were a thousand things he was thinking at that moment. But how to articulate them was the difficult part. Raising his head, TK looked at the person sitting across from him, trying to figure out what to do.

Kari Kamiya had been scribbling away on her paper at a speed TK had never seen. Admittedly, she had taken a minute to get going and threw away her first piece of paper after writing only a few words, but now she writing so fast her paper was almost on fire. Her vigorous writing did not help TK's mood as the seconds passed.

How could he even begin to write about what he honestly thought of Kari, when he had been hiding the truth for years? Writing something to hand in and be reviewed would be tantamount to publically announcing his feelings and asking for people's input.

"Five minutes left everyone," the teacher announced.

TK swore internally. Knowing he had to do something, he grabbed his pencil and put the tip to the paper. There had to be something honest he could write about Kari that would be inconspicuous. After a few more seconds, he finally moved his hand.

 _She's my best friend._

It was the truth, which would be enough to get him through the day's task. But deep down, TK didn't feel that it was enough. He still felt like he owed Kari more than that, even if she would never read it. He changed the period to a comma and added three more words.

 _She's my best friend, and she's perfect._

Staring down at the words, TK did feel a small sense of satisfaction. It was enough to tell his teacher, but didn't give away his feelings too much. At least that was how he felt. He flipped over the piece of paper, and moved it to the side of his desk. TK smiled at his teacher as she came over to collect his short piece of work.

As he turned away from the adult, TK looked at the girl sitting across from him. His heart skipped several beats. It always did when she smiled at him. Kari had raised her head to give TK a quick smile before she continued to write.

In that moment, TK knew what he had written wasn't enough. It may have been enough for his assignment, but it wasn't enough for him. He needed to truly say what he felt about Kari. Even if it was just for his own edification, he had to truly express himself. Not knowing what he would do with the paper when he finished it, TK picked up his pencil again and he began to write.

His arm flew back and forth across the page, knowing he only had a few precious minutes to write before the class moved on to something else. He wrote so quickly that the words were barely legible. He wrote without truly thinking of what the words meant as the appeared before him. He only wrote what his head and heart knew to be true in that moment as he thought about Kari.

TK could still hear Kari scribbling along with him as the teacher announced that one minute remained. One would almost assume the two of them were in a race to see who could write the most in a short period of time. TK knew Kari would have more than him, but he didn't care. How much he said didn't matter. It was what he said.

"And that's time. If I haven't already collected your paper, please stop writing."

TK continued to write fervently as the teacher collected the remaining papers from his classmates. He finished one last thought as Kari's own paper was being collected, then whipped the page off his desk. Folding it up carefully, he slipped it in his binder. Looking up again, he saw Kari smiling at him again.

Feeling his heart quicken he smiled back, suddenly knowing what to do with the paper.

* * *

Kari reached her locker, relieved that the day was over. The noise of her fellow students blended into a dull groan as she sighed in satisfaction. It had been a painfully slow day, in which nothing seemed to happen. All her classes had dragged on at a snail's pace, and there had been almost nothing of value.

The only enjoyable aspect had been the exercise in Creative Writing. Writing about TK was the easiest thing she could ever be asked to do. She hoped that the teacher wouldn't think she was being long winded with how much she wrote, but Kari couldn't help herself. Granted, she could have just handed in her original piece of paper, and it would have been just as honest. But she knew she wanted to keep those exact words private. At least for now.

Pulling open her locker, Kari was surprised to see something she hadn't put there.

Balanced delicately on top of her backpack, was a folded paper with her name on it. Kari instantly recognised TK's handwriting, but even if she hadn't she would have known it was from TK. The boy was the only other person who knew the combination to her locker. No one else could have put something in there so deliberately.

Wondering when he found the time to sneak this letter in, she reached in and picked it up. She carefully unfolded it, and saw a large amount of untidy writing, that only years of experience enabled her to read. Kari looked over her shoulder, making sure there was no one trying to peek at the note, then began to read.

 _There are so many things I could say about the girl sitting across from me. I could say she has brown hair, brown eyes, enjoys photography, likes to run, is a kind and considerate person, and is my best and oldest friend. I could say all that, but it wouldn't be enough._

 _I could elaborate and mention that her hair is like silk. It feels so smooth and has a brilliant shine to it. It also smells distinctly of pomegranates from the shampoo she uses. And I could go on that her eyes are so beautiful that it's impossible not to lose yourself in them. They're so gentle and deep that when you find yourself gazing into them, you can't help but feel a warm sense of happiness that can't compare to anything else._

 _I could describe how passionate she is about her hobbies. The number of times she's abruptly stopped running while we're out jogging just to take a picture may annoy some people, but I love that she does it. She's almost never truly sad or out of place, because she's always thinking about the things she loves doing. Her dedication and joy is nothing short of inspirational._

 _And it would be easy to talk about how deeply she cares for her friends and loved ones. She's always thinking of everybody else's happiness and never her own. She'll stay up talking to you until the early hours for no reason, other than to talk. She'll be the first person at your door when you need a shoulder to lean on. She'll never stop until everyone in the world is happy, which is something I adore._

 _I could say all these things about the girl sitting across from me, but it still wouldn't be enough. Partially because a few lines about who she is will never adequately describe her. But more importantly, it's not nearly as important as how she makes me feel._

 _So instead, I'm going to describe what I feel when I look across the table at Kari Kamiya._

 _Always, there's the initial burst of adrenaline. My heart begins to pound and my mind starts to go blank. I'm only thinking of her when she's around. Truth be told, I'm often thinking of her when she's not around. But when my heart starts to race and my thoughts disappear, the adrenaline takes over. It's what makes me able to say simple words like, 'Hey, how are you?' to my best friend, rather than babble like an incoherent lunatic._

 _Then there's the warmth I mentioned before. The warmness of her eyes, that make me feel exuberant beyond belief. I feel like the luckiest guy in the world, just because she makes me so happy. I almost walk around in a depression every minute I'm not able to look into her eyes. That's how joyous she makes me feel when she looks at me. The sun wanes like the moon in comparison, when I look into her eyes and feel that warmth._

 _Following the warmth, often comes a feeling of queasiness as my stomach lurches around. While my insides rearrange themselves, I do my very best to retain the appearance that I am calm and collected. Apparently this doesn't work too well, as I'm often told that I look like I'm trying to bite my lips off when I'm trying to act normal. But it keeps my mouth shut, then that's much better than the alternative of losing control._

 _And who could forget the nervousness? I worry that any and every little thing I do will cause her distress. I worry that whenever she opens her mouth, she'll say she wants nothing more to do with me. I know she never would. She's far too much of an angel to do that. But when the anxious irrationality kicks in, the mind can think of some pretty crazy things. And I just pray that my fears never come to pass, because I couldn't stand to lose the privilege of her friendship._

 _Speaking of crazy, I almost always feel that too. I over analyse every thing she says, every movement she makes. I start to believe that the sun is shining because she's happy with me, and that I got splashed by a car because I annoyed her the other week when I couldn't meet her due to practise running late. I'll believe in anything ridiculous, and ignore what is logically going on._

 _Sometimes I may not feel several of these things. Sometimes I'll feel them all at the exact same time. The inconstancy has made it difficult to get used to, which is saying something, considering this has been happening for as long as I can remember._

 _Because 'as long as I can remember' is how long I've had feelings for Kari. Strong feelings. Feelings beyond being a friend. Beyond being a best friend. They're the feelings of wanting to hold her in my arms. Of wanting to protect her from harm. Of wanting to hear about every single little detail of her day; from the good to the bad, from the important to the completely insignificant. The feelings of knowing that there is no one else in my life who is as important as she is, and I would do anything to make her happy. Because when she's happy, I'm happy. They're the feelings that you feel when you care for someone the way I care about Kari._

 _There will never be enough for me to say about the girl sitting across from me. And there is so much I wish I could say that remains ineffable. But in the end, the exact words don't matter, because it all amounts to the same thing._

 _She's perfect. She's my best friend. And she's my everything._

Kari's mouth hung open slightly as she reread the last few lines over and over. She hadn't noticed that her bag had fallen out of her locker. She didn't realise that the hallway was now almost completely deserted. She was completely unaware of who was standing behind her.

"So, you read it?" TK asked.

Kari started and spun around. TK was giving her a small, but nervous smile. She said nothing as he reached around her to close her locker. It took several more seconds of silent processing before she did speak.

"TK… This, I-I mean…"

"I know it's sudden," the boy admitted guiltily. "It probably wasn't the best way to do it, or the best place for that matter. And I know it's not fair to spring it on you. Especially not after you wrote so much about me and actually handed it in. I had no idea what to hand in, which is why that draft was so short. But, well, I had to tell you everything. I had to let you know."

Kari surveyed her friend, still holding the letter tightly. Slowly, a small smile appeared on her face. Without saying a word, she reached into the pocket of her jacket and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Typical us," she said, still smiling. "We both had the same idea. We just went about it slightly different ways. You went long, I went short."

It took a moment for TK to realise what Kari was saying. "Wait, is that your first draft? The one I thought I saw you throw away."

"Yeah," Kari told him, breathlessly. "I wanted to save it. To show it to you at some point in time. I had no idea when it would be. I thought it might even take years. I guess I was wrong. Apparently, that time is now."

She held up the piece of paper. TK stared at it for a moment before he slowly raised his hand. Slipping it from her grasp, he flipped it open. He gave a large gulp which almost hurt his Adam's Apple, before he looked down at the page. It was almost the exact same length as what he had handed in to the teacher.

 _He's my best friend, and I love him._

TK read the note once. Twice. Three times, in quick succession. Each time his eyes moved across the page, he expected the words to change. However, the black ink on the page remained the same.

He looked up to see Kari, who had picked up her bag, blushing deeply, but with a hopeful smile on her face. As he felt a wave of joy crash over her, TK smiled as well.

Folding the note and putting it in his pocket, he reached out and took Kari's hand. They gripped one another tightly as their fingers interlocked with one another.

And together they turned to start what was going to be a rather long walk home.


End file.
